Brighton: London by the Sea Past Review
By A student (Chemistry/Plan II Honors, The University of Texas at Austin) - abroad from 01/21/2013 to 06/14/2013 with
University of Sussex: Brighton - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
I learned how to communicate better with people whose beliefs and values are different from my own in a positive manner (and I even became friends with some of them!) I also learned more about what I value in other people and what I like to see when I travel and/or live somewhere.
Review Photos
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Sussex Uni stresses an independent education. By this I mean that the student is basically responsible for learning all of the material with little help from tutors (which can be a good thing, as it forces students to learn the material on their own time and think critically about it instead of regurgitating what the tutors said in lecture). However, I do feel that some additional guidance from tutors on what to focus on, especially in first year modules, would have been very helpful. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The program administrators here were quite helpful, but didn't push the international students to only do activities together. This helped me make British friends in addition to my foreign exchange friends. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The living arrangements were what I expected from university housing. There were repeated issues with the fire alarms that weren't addressed too strictly by the RA's and cleanliness was also a bit of an issue (especially at East Slope), but this was mostly by a flat-to-flat basis. |
| * Food: |
Sussex Uni does not offer catered housing to my knowledge so I cooked my own meals. The only downside to this was that the grocery store on campus was one of the more upscale ones, thus the prices were not exactly student friendly. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Language was not as much of a barrier as it could have been as I am a native English speaker, although it was fun to learn the different slang words the British have. I adapted the culture here quite quickly and enjoyed the process of doing so. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't really experience any major health issues other than a cold here or there. Had I experienced a major issue, UT Austin had international health insurance that would have helped me out as I would not have been covered by the NHS over in the UK. |
| * Safety: |
Brighton is a relatively safe city as most of the late night activities are confined near the marina and the pier. I never felt unsafe walking around at night. I did not feel the safest in my dorm because the neighboring flat broke into ours by breaking the fire seal on the door (which was a bit of a nightmare to say the least!) |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
The UK is definitely way more expensive than the US, even with a student's budget. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | about 100-120 dollars a week |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Look into getting a railcard or any type of card with a student discount. I saved a TON of money using the trains by having my 16-25 railcard. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | I wish I would have known how difficult it would be to leave behind my friends and family for such an extended period of time, but I managed to do it without having a nervous breakdown or calling home every day. |
Reasons For Studying Abroad
| To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you. |
The Nearly Native or Trail BlazerCraving the most authentic experience possible, perhaps you lived with a host family or really got in good with the locals. You may have felt confined by your program requirements and group excursions. Instead, you'd have preferred to plan your own trips, even skipping class to conduct your own 'field work.' |
